Practice Areas

For many years, Becerra & Colgin have made their mark in the Houston region as experienced lawyers in a number of practice areas. In Texas, there are 21 recognized legal specializations, and attaining certification in any requires dedication beyond that of a general legal practitioner. It takes several years of experience, professional references, specialized education in the chosen field, and passing an extensive examination. Among the fields Becerra & Colgin are experienced in are criminal law, family law, law litigation, personal injury law, and will, trust and estate planning, and probate law. Each of these fields offers a unique set of challenges, including:

• Criminal law is one of the most diverse practice areas and includes a huge variety of case types. They can be as simple as a DWI picked up during a lapse of judgment, or as complex as capital murder cases. Criminal law is a complex field and defendants are strongly encouraged to get legal assistance. An experienced defense attorney can help negotiate favorable sentencing for a defendant and gather additional information pertinent to the case through investigators or witness deposition. These options are normally harder for an independent defendant to manage.

• Family law is often highly sensitive and involves marriage, divorce, child custody and adoption. Family law specialists can help transfer official guardianship over to an adopting family, help set up a prenuptial agreement prior to marriage, mediate the difficult and emotionally charged divorce process, or help a parent secure custody of a child. Child custody hearings, in particular, require the information gathering techniques a lawyer brings to the case, as abuse, neglect, or unsafe living conditions can be difficult to prove.

• Will, trust, estate, planning and probate law is generally concerned with organizing and allocating property left behind by the deceased. Depending on the size of a person’s estate, the probate process can be lengthy and complex, requiring the help of probate lawyers to ensure the estate beneficiaries receive what they are allocated. Lawyers working in these practice areas can also set up trusts to make property transfer easier, ensure a person’s will is executed properly, and take steps to avoid the often expensive probate process.

• Law and litigation often centers around large financial judgments, especially when commercial entities are involved. Law and litigation includes business fraud claims, breach of contract, commercial development disputes, intellectual property disputes, and business ownership and joint venture disputes. Law and litigation typically requires extensive negotiation between the parties, and establishing a settlement that’s amenable to both sides requires experience and finesse on the part of the attorney.

• Personal injury law is relevant whenever a person is harmed by the negligence, willful action or carelessness of another. Anyone hurt by a vehicle accident, defective product, dangerous medication, unsafe working conditions, or environmental hazard (like toxic chemicals), among other things, can sue for compensation against the responsible party. Personal injury law often deals with multimillion dollar suits, and these suits are almost always hotly contested by the defendant. A personal injury lawyer will ensure the victim is armed with the information they need to prove their case, and will guide the victim through the stressful deposition and settlement processes.

With Becerra & Colgin’s experience in these fields, nearly any client can benefit from our expertise, no matter the nature of their case.